San Antonio City Code § 19-1 Definitions.
Sec. 19-1. - Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall for the purpose of this chapter have the meanings respectively ascribed to them in this section.
Alley shall mean minor ways which are used primarily for vehicular service access to the back or the side of properties otherwise abutting on a street.
Ambulance shall mean any privately owned vehicle equipped or used for transporting the wounded, injured or sick.
Authorized emergency vehicle shall mean vehicles of the fire department, police vehicles, public and private ambulances for which permits have been issued by the state board of health, emergency vehicles of municipal departments or public service corporations as are designated or authorized by the governing-body of an incorporated city, private vehicles operated by volunteer firemen or certified emergency medical services volunteers while answering a fire alarm or responding to a medical emergency, and vehicles operated by blood banks or tissue banks, accredited or approved under the laws of this state or the United States, while making emergency deliveries of blood, drugs or medicines, or organs.
Barricade shall mean every barrier, obstruction or block placed upon or across any road, street or highway of this city by an authorized person for the purpose of preventing the passage of motor vehicles over such street, road or highway during a period of construction or during a flood or other emergency.
Boot means a device intended to immobilize a vehicle and designed to attach to the tire or wheel.
Boundary street shall mean a public street which is adjacent to and abutting one (1) or more sides of the proposed site.
Build-out year shall mean the proposed year of completion of the land development project, when its capacity for attracting and producing traffic is maximized.
Central business district shall mean all streets and portions of streets within the area bounded as follows: Beginning at the interchange between Durango Boulevard and I.H. 35 Expressway; thence northward and eastward along I.H. 35 Expressway to I.H. 37 Expressway; thence southward on I.H. 37 Expressway to Durango Boulevard; thence westward along Durango Boulevard to I.H. 35 Expressway the point of beginning.
Commercial motor vehicle shall mean a motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle, designed or used primarily to transport property. The term shall include a passenger car reconstructed and used primarily for delivery purposes, but shall not include a passenger car used to deliver the United States mail.
Controlled-access highway shall mean every highway, street or roadway in respect to which owners or occupants of abutting property or -lands and other persons have no legal right of access to or from the same, except at such points only and in such manner as may be determined by the public authority having jurisdiction over such highway, street or roadway.
Crosswalk shall mean:
(1) That part of a roadway at an intersection included within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs, or in the absence of curbs from the edges of the traversable roadway;
(2) Any portion of a roadway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly indicated for pedestrian crossing by lines or other markings on the surfaces.
Decal parking shall mean the duly authorized loading zone parking of a vehicle with a decal parking program sticker or visitor permit prominently displayed in the front window on the driver's side of the vehicle. The time limit for decal parking need not be posted since notice of all rules and regulations applicable to decal parking are provided to decal purchasers. Decal parking includes parking with a visitor permit.
Driver shall mean every person who drives or is in actual physical control of a vehicle.
Driveway shall mean every way or place in private ownership and used for vehicular travel by the owner and those having express or implied permission from the owner but not by other persons.
Flashing emergency light shall mean any lamp mounted on an authorized emergency vehicle or ambulance which displays a flashing light visible under normal atmospheric conditions from a distance of five hundred (500) feet from such vehicle.
Intermediate construction phase shall mean on land development projects with multiple phases of construction, there may be several intermediate construction phases which precede the final construction phase. The final construction phase is completed in the build-out year.
Intersections shall mean the area embraced within the prolongation or connection of the lateral curb lines, or, if none then the lateral boundary lines of the roadways of two (2) highways which join one another at or approximately at right angles, or the area within which vehicles traveling upon different highways joining at any other angle may come in conflict.
Laned roadway shall mean a roadway which is divided into two (2) or more clearly marked lanes for vehicular traffic.
Loading zone shall mean that space adjacent to a curb reserved for the exclusive use of commercial vehicles during the loading and unloading of materials and decal parking. Loading zones shall be established only by ordinance, and the city traffic engineer shall designate such zones by the erection and maintenance of signs giving public notice of each loading zone, its hours of enforcement, and the length of parking time allowed, except that decal parking time limits need not be posted.
Moped shall mean a motor-driven cycle whose speed attainable in one (1) mile is not more than thirty (30) miles per hour and that is equipped with a motor that produces not more than two-brake horsepower. If an internal combustion engine is used, the piston displacement may not exceed fifty (50) cubic centimeters and the power drive system may not require the operator to shift gears.
Motorcycles shall mean every motor vehicle having a saddle for the use of the rider and designed to travel on not more than three (3) wheels in contact with the ground, but excluding a tractor.
Motor-driven cycle shall mean every motorcycle with a motor which has an engine piston displacement of not more than one hundred twenty-five (125) cubic centimeters.
Motor vehicle shall mean every vehicle which is self-propelled and every vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead trolley wires but not operated upon rails.
No parking zone shall mean any and all places designated as no parking zones by the traffic engineer and identified as such by appropriate signs.
Occupancy shall mean the presumed level of build out as estimated by the property owner of the proposed development at the later of five (5) years or build out.
Official traffic-control devices shall mean all signs, signals, markings, and devices not inconsistent with this Act placed or erected by authority of a public body or official having jurisdiction, for the purpose of regulating, warning, or guiding traffic and includes:
(1) Traffic control signal which shall mean any device, whether manually, electrically, or mechanically operated, by which traffic is alternately directed to stop and permitted to proceed.
(2) Railroad sign or signal which shall mean any sign, signal or device erected by authority of a public body or official or by a railroad and intended to give notice of the presence of railroad tracks or the approach of a railroad train.
Owner shall mean a person who holds the legal title of a vehicle. In the event a vehicle is the subject of an agreement for the conditional sale or lease with an option to purchase, and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee or lessee, such conditional vendee or lessee shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of this chapter.
Paid-parking zone means both parking meter zones and pay station zones.
Park shall mean the standing of a vehicle, whether occupied or not, upon a street otherwise than temporarily for the purpose of, and while actively engaged in, receiving or discharging passengers or loading or unloading merchandise or in obedience to traffic regulations, signs, or signals or an involuntary stopping of a vehicle by reason of a cause beyond the control of the operator of the vehicle.
Parking meter means a device, other than a pay-and-display station or a pay-by-space station, located at a parking space and intended to receive money for parking. Multiple parking meters may be located on one (1) pole.
Parking meter space means a space for which a parking meter is installed.
Parking meter zone means an area in which parkers must pay a parking meter to park.
Pay station means any electronic device that is either a pay-and-display station or a pay-by-space station. Parking meters are not pay stations.
Pay station zone means an area in which parkers must pay a pay station to park.
Pay-and-display station means an electronic pay station that dispenses a receipt for payment to be displayed as required in section 19-221.
Pay-by-space station means an electronic device serving multiple parking spaces at which a customer enters the number of the space occupied and pays. The station records the space numbers for which payment has been made and for how long payment has been made.
Peak hour trips (PHT) shall mean the number of traffic units generated by and attracted to the proposed development during its heaviest hour of use, dependent on type of use.
Pedestrian shall mean any person afoot.
Phased construction project shall mean any land development project which is developed in greater than a single phase. Such projects are identified by the issuance of permits or approvals of submittals to the city.
Pole trailer shall mean every vehicle with or without motive power designed to be drawn by another vehicle and attached to the towing vehicle by means of a reach or pole, or by being boomed or otherwise secured to the towing vehicle, and ordinarily used for transporting long or irregularly shaped loads such as poles, pipes, or structural members capable, generally, of sustaining themselves as beams between the supporting connections.
Police officer shall mean every officer authorized to direct or regulate traffic or to make arrests for violations of traffic regulations.
Private road shall mean every way or place in private ownership and used for vehicular travel by the owner and those having expressed or implied permission from the owner but note by other persons.
Projected traffic shall mean the traffic which is projected to exist on an existing or proposed street, exclusive of site-generated traffic.
Railroad shall mean a carrier of persons or property upon cars, other than street cars, operated upon stationary rails.
Railroad train shall mean a steam engine, electric or other motor, with or without cars coupled thereto, operated upon rails, except streetcars.
Recreational vehicle shall mean any motor vehicle, including an oversized motor vehicle, primarily designed as temporary living quarters for recreational camping or travel use including a travel trailer, camping trailer, truck camper, and motor home.
Right-of-way shall mean the right of one (1) vehicle or pedestrian to proceed in a lawful manner in preference to another vehicle or pedestrian approaching under such circumstances of direction, speed and proximity as to give rise to danger of collision unless one grants precedence to the other.
Road tractor shall mean a vehicle designed for the purpose of mowing the right-of-way of a public highway, or a motor vehicle designed or used for drawing another vehicle or a load and not constructed to carry:
(1) An independent load; or
(2) A part of the weight of the vehicle and load to be drawn.
Roadway shall mean that portion of a street or highway improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel. In the event a highway includes two (2) or more separate roadways the term "roadway" as used herein shall refer to any such roadway separately but not to all such roadways collectively.
Safety zone shall mean the area or space officially set apart within a roadway for the exclusive use of pedestrians and which is protected or is so marked or indicated by adequate signs as to be plainly visible at all times while set apart as a safety zone.
School bus shall mean every motor vehicle owned by any private, public or governmental agency and operated for the transportation of children to or from school. Provided, however, that the term "school bus" shall not include motor vehicles which do not conform to the rules, regulations and standards established by the state department of education in regard to color and marking, nor shall it include any vehicle constituting a part of the fleet of any street transportation company serving the public generally.
School crossing zone shall mean that portion of any street or public property which, on the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation, the traffic engineer may designate for the crossing of those attending a school or other institution of learning.
School or other institution of learning shall mean any public or private organization giving regular instruction and having an average daily attendance of fifty (50) students or more.
School zone shall mean each and every street and all public property or ways within one thousand (1,000) feet of the boundaries of any school or other institution of learning.
Semitrailer shall mean a vehicle designed or used with a motor vehicle so that part of the weight of the vehicle and its load rests on or is carried by another vehicle.
Sidewalk shall mean that portion of a street between the curb lines or the lateral lines of a roadway and the adjacent property lines intended for the use of pedestrians.
Site-generated traffic shall mean vehicular trips attracted to, or produced by, the proposed development site.
Street or highway shall mean the entire width between the boundary lines of every way publicly maintained when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular traffic.
Study area boundary shall mean the limits of the area in which analysis is conducted or for which information is provided. This area is determined by the property owner or its representative, and agreed to by the city traffic engineer, based on the size of the development and the PHTs projected to be generated by the proposed development. In the case of a level 1 or 2 TIA, this may include the site, and the area within a distance no greater than one-fourth (¼) mile from the boundary of the site. In the case of a level 3 TIA, this area will be determined by the property owner based on sound engineering judgment and agreed to by the city, but in all cases shall be no more than the area contained in a one-mile radius from the site. In those instances where the property owner has neither submitted preliminary plans nor applied for an initial development permit prior to the effective date of this ordinance, the determination of the area to be studied by the property owner must be approved by the city's traffic engineer for all TIA levels, and before granting approval of a level 2 TIA, the city's traffic engineer may require the area of the study to exceed the maximum area prescribed above by one-fourth (¼) mile.
Through highway shall mean every highway or portion thereof on which vehicular traffic is given preferential right-of-way, and at the entrances to which vehicular traffic from intersecting highways is required by law to yield right-of-way to vehicles on such through highway in obedience to a stop sign, yield sign or other official traffic-control device, when such signs or devices are erected as provided in this chapter.
Traffic shall mean pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, buses, and other conveyances either singly or together while using any street for purposes of travel.
Traffic control device shall mean any electric traffic control signals, stop signs, yield right-of-way signs, and any other such device designed and used to control the movement of traffic.
Traffic-control signal shall mean any device, whether manually, electrically, or mechanically operated, by which traffic is alternately directed to stop and permitted to proceed.
Traffic engineer shall mean the director of traffic and transportation for the city.
Trailer shall mean a vehicle that:
(1) Is designed or used to carry a load wholly on its own structure; and
(2) Is drawn or designed to be drawn by a motor vehicle.
Trip generation summary shall mean a table summarizing the trip generation characteristics of the development for the entire day and the a.m. and p.m. peak periods including the rates and units used to calculate the number of trips. Information on appropriate trip generation rates and procedures may be obtained by contacting the public works department. Institute of Transportation Engineers trip rates will be used unless a better source is identified and is acceptable to the Director of Public Works or his/her designee.
Truck shall mean every motor vehicle designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation of property.
Truck-tractor shall mean a motor vehicle:
(1) Designed and used primarily for drawing another vehicle; and
(2) Not constructed to carry a load other than a part of the weight of the vehicle and load to be drawn.
Vehicle shall mean every device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, except devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.
Warning sign shall mean every sign, signal, marking and device erected or placed upon any street, road, highway or barricade, or erected or placed upon any street, road or highway within the city which is under construction or being repaired for the purpose of regulating, warning or guiding motor vehicular traffic or otherwise stating the conditions under which traffic by motor vehicle may be had upon such street, road or highway. A warning sign shall include, but shall not be limited to a flagman placed upon any street, road or highway for the purpose of directing traffic around or upon such street, road or highway as is under construction or in the process of being repaired.
(Code 1959, §§ 38-1—38-12; Ord. No. 29496, § 1, 5-24-61; Ord. No. 35903, § 1, 11-2-67; Ord. No. 40269, §§ 1, 2, 1-13-72; Ord. No. 41445, § 1, 11-9-72; Ord. No. 42075, § 1, 4-12-73; Ord. No. 45540-A, 7-31-75; Ord. No. 45770, 9-25-75; Ord. No. 63132, 6-26-86; Ord. No. 74210, §§ 4, 5, 8-29-91; Ord. No. 84917, § 1, 10-3-96; Ord. No. 87147, § 1, 12-18-97; Ord. No. 91700, § 1, 4-27-00; Ord. No. 2010-05-06-0387, § 1, 5-6-10)